Star-crossed Rebels
by AlmostDoug
Summary: "Why can't I help any of these people I love? Maybe this time will be different." These three were caught in chaos, and Gin pulled them out, hoping to make allies he could trust. Little did he know they'd jump right into the fire, and gain so much momentum against Aizen. OCs, no pairings, supposed to fit with canon, set before Ichigo becomes a soul reaper.
1. The Beginning

**A/N: Story begins around 90 years before Ichigo meets Rukia. Trying to fit with the canon so it will obviously feature some spoilers (shikai, bankai, character relations, main plot point about Aizen, maybe others), and I will not use Japanese introductions (i.e. first name before last, no honorifics) or accent marks. My character names mean nothing, zanpakuto names being the obvious exception. Feel free to mention it to me if I did something wrong with character names or zanpakuto names, and especially if something I say doesn't match the canon. For those who care, I also won't pair any canon characters with my OCs or with other characters (not to say there won't be suggested interests… because Soi Fon and Kyoraku exist). I don't own Bleach or any of the characters that come from Tite Kubo. A/N over.**

32nd district in east Rukongai, the day had barely started, but Takeshi Mori already felt like crap. He couldn't quite place it, but something was off, making him feel worlds away. The boy had barely met up with his friends, but even they could tell he wasn't himself. "Are you feeling alright, Takeshi? It's been an hour but you haven't said anything about how I look." He looked down into Akari's bright red eyes from where he was standing next to the bench.

"Yeah, usually you'd have hit on her at least a dozen times by now," Kaito added, scratching his short, dirty blonde hair. "What happened to our douche?"

He looked away from the girl's striking, white hair and smiled instinctually. "Sorry beautiful, I don't think I got enough sleep last night or something. After we screwed around yesterday, Dad got on me about practicing kendo." He swished his black hair, hoping doing so would help him stay grounded in reality, but his thoughts dragged him away as he thought about how the adults around here would react to Kaito's language. His vocabulary was certainly colorful, but he doubted they would appreciate that the way he and Akari do.

"What's up with him? He's staring into space again," Kaito blurted out, unheard by Takeshi.

"We had him for a second, but maybe he just doesn't feel like playing today." The albino girl didn't care much for Takeshi's prepubescent flirting, but loved staring into his ice blue eyes. "Hey d'you even know what a douche is?"

"It's an insult." She sighed as she wondered whether he should be considered ignorant or ahead for his age. His plain, green eyes seemed full of arrogance now, but she was really hoping that these two would grow up to be the kind, mature soul reapers their parents all imagined them to become someday. After all, these three showed promise.

Kaito then shoved Takeshi into the wall he was leaning against to get his attention. "Hey, do you think your dad would let us play with his wooden swords?" He asked, suddenly eager for something to happen, having grown bored with insulting Takeshi.

"Sure, as long as we actually spar and call them bokuto." His smile was something he shared freely, when he could think to do so. He liked smiling, even though he knew it to be strange more often than true or proper, because he found it helped convince others to do the same. "Let's go!"

"Damn, I'd rather just beat you over the head. And who the hell said you could lead?!" Akari giggled at Kaito's irritation, though she knew he was all too serious, and Takeshi would_let_ him get a lot of blows if she weren't there to encourage actual competition. She sighed, as she realized they'd likely not be friends if not for her.

They weren't far from Takeshi's house, and when they arrived, they found the house empty. They snuck around the house and entered through the back as always. Takeshi's father trusted him, likely more than he should, so none of the practice weapons, or real ones for that matter, were hidden or locked up. The kids picked out a few bokuto, and started sparring. As usual, Takeshi and Kaito were well matched. Akari, however, beat Takeshi and lost to Kaito, with Takeshi being the only one who noticed his easing up for her, as Akari just enjoyed winning and Kaito kept busy criticizing him for losing to a girl. They're only eight after all. Or are they nine? Takeshi felt himself getting lost again, as screams pierced the air.

The three immediately ran to the window, and saw ruffians parading the streets, killing and pillaging as they went. Akari started to scream as a couple came towards the house, but Kaito silenced her.

"Shh. We need to grab some swords and hide." Both of the others were dumbstruck by the situation and the bloodshed, and couldn't think to do anything but what Kaito said. He was always rational, if blunt. The men, from one of the outer districts, were already breaking through the door, so the kids ran into the kitchen, and armed themselves near the door.

"Kill anyone inside, take any money and valuables. Maybe we could end up buying our way into a better district, eh?" The slender man spoke coldly, clutching his katana casually.

His larger companion spoke out, concerned. "Wait, what if they're just kids, y'know? I like their big eyes." He rolled his cleaver in his hand as he looked down.

"That kinda thought'll get ya killed. Don't think twice, we need outta here before any soul reapers get here. Get lootin'." And with that the two split up, with the lighter of the two heading to the dojo, and the heavier heading for… the kitchen. Of course, Kaito thought cynically.

As the man made his way into the kitchen, he was attacked by the two boys, with Kaito lopping off his right arm, and Takeshi slicing his chest open. Akari just gasped and stepped back in horror, as Kaito administered the final blow in a desperate bid to silence the man's screams. Takeshi stepped back in disgust, uncomfortable with how it felt to _feel_ his blade slice flesh. Kaito yelled at Akari as he heard the slender intruder running their way. "RUN!"

As he yelled, the man came running through the doorway, kicking Takeshi into the table as the boy raised his sword, leaving him unconscious. Takeshi attacked him, only to have his sword batted away and get punched in the gut, falling against the wall. The man then proceeded to stab him in his shoulder, and twist the blade a little, muttering to himself. "Fuckin' told that idiot. Maybe I jinxed him?" Takeshi screamed out in pain, wondering where the hell Akari was.

Seemingly on cue, Akari came running out from the corner of the room, tears in her eyes, and slammed her blade into the man's right shoulder. As his arm reeled back and he screamed, his arm dangling, Akari fell to the ground, dropping her katana, and vomited, splashing on the man's feet as he stepped back towards the doorway. Regaining his balance and resisting the pain in his damaged shoulder, the man proceeded to kick at Akari, pushing her closer to the table.

Takeshi, with the blade having dropped from his shoulder, was in such pain he could only watch and hold back his tears. It took all he could do to stand up, and even then, he only felt a few things. All extreme. Pain. Fear. Anger. And…

_**POWER.**_

He hardly felt the pain anymore, he just started charging the man, barely aware of his feet moving. Of his sword arm outstretching. Of the asauchi changing form in his hand. Of the words escaping his lips, words he didn't completely understand. "Change, Kurosawa (_Black Swamp_)."

The burglar felt the stab into his back at the same time he heard the words. But the steel, though definitely cold metal, felt odd, moving as though it was alive, and he could only manage to look down at the tip of it protruding from his abdomen. The ninjato blade sticking out was pitch black, but it hardly seemed to stay still. Seemingly amorphous, the blade moved like a flame, leaving one to wonder which side was the edge, if there was one. He could feel his life, or his very soul draining away, seemingly in the opposite direction of the outward-spreading blood.

A man brought himself into the room using shunpo, and the first thing he saw was the small, black blade flaring up around the wound as the man seemingly faded out of existence. Takeshi fell to the ground, leaving the man practically alone in the room. "Hoo, boy, and here I thought, when I felt that spike of spiritual pressure, I might find a rogue soul reaper. That'd probably be relaxing, compared to this." The man looked around the room with his narrow eyes, and decided to evacuate the children, in case they could be saved. He found the situation to be grim, but just his kind of interesting.

* * *

Kaito was the first to wake up, being careful not to move much as he did so. He had already imagined a worst-case scenario or two. He quickly noticed the others in their beds, Akari next to him, and Takeshi across from them. He didn't see anyone else in the room, and decided to check his wounds. Nothing major. He got up, with the intention of finding out what was going on.

"Oh, good. You're awake. That'll help questioning." Kaito turned to look at the man who had come into the room so quietly. The shihakusho he wore instilled trust and curiosity, but his seemingly closed eyes kept the boy feeling on guard.

"Who the hell are you, where am I, and why are you here?" Kaito spoke quickly and decisively, causing the man to turn his head confusedly.

"Eh? Hmmm… I suppose there's nothing to hide. But you have to answer my questions next. I'm Gin Ichimaru, lieutenant of 5th squad, you're at my squad barracks in the Seireitei where a coupl'a my subordinates who used to be from 4th squad will be taking care of your wounds, and where you'll be staying until your parents can get you. And I'm here to figure out who your guys' parents are. And because I found what I saw walking into your house… intriguing. M'kay?" Gin turned his head again.

"What do you mean intriguing?"

"Mostly the dead men."

"Men? Plural? Um, that wasn't my house, it was Takeshi's. Get to your questions, then leave," he spoke roughly, delighting Gin, and made a shooing motion.

"Sure, now your name is?"

* * *

Akari woke up mere minutes after Gin left, and Kaito briefed her on what he knew. The two grew concerned as Takeshi didn't wake up for hours. Even after they were brought breakfast, it took him another couple hours to wake up. He was briefed, though he said nothing of what happened to him, or of the dagger he found sitting next to him, the same one he killed the intruder with, though it was sealed now. Gin came in a few hours later, with lunch, but without his usual smile.

"Kids, bad news, your parents have been found. Aaaaaaand they're dead." He blurted out as the woman with him put their lunches in front of them.

"Captain! I told you to let me tell them if you weren't going to be gentle," she yelled, as Akari burst into tears, and Takeshi began to cuss loudly. Kaito looked down solemnly, as Gin opened his eyes wide and rubbed the back of his neck. The girl left on order, told to not mention the situation to Aizen, and Gin stood there until Takeshi and Akari quieted.

"So, I know this is hard, but I'm gonna be taking care of you guys from now on. Sorry for your losses, but I think I might could use your guys' help. I'll be here if you guys have questions, but I have one question that's kinda urgent." He looked towards Takeshi, who was shuddering. "How did you come to have a zanpakuto?"

Kaito immediately looked up with great interest, and Akari wiped her eyes as best she could, letting out a confused "Hunh?" Takeshi looked away, not sure himself.

"I dunno… it just… happened… while I fought that guy. I said those words and… is that really what this is? A zanpakuto?" He pulled out the dagger as he spoke of it.

Kaito cursed Takeshi under his breath, staring in amazement. Akari just laid her head back down, feeling overwhelmed. Gin turned away, muttering to himself. "Definitely has potential, but these kids make me feel like I got questions more than answers." Gin sighed, frowning as he turned the corner. "Maybe I could get Rangiku to help with these kids?"

* * *

Three days later, the three kids were healed up and had worked out most of their problems. Takeshi was still solemn, and Akari was depressed, but they had all gotten over the surprises, and had agreed to let Gin train them to be soul reapers. Gin came in to see them, and, he hoped, to quietly sneak them back to his place.

"Heya kids. Feeling better?" He knew the answer walking in. Takeshi was joking with Akari, and Kaito was practicing kendo. It's not hard to notice improvements when they were wrecks just two days ago. The three all came over to him, expecting some more news. "So… hey I _jus' _looked at you close, Akari, and what's up with your whole… hair... and eyes... and pale skin?"

"I'm albino. It-"

Kaito butt in sharply, "what's up with _your_ hair and eyes and pale skin, huh Mr. Squinty Silver?"

Gin laughed aloud and avoided the question. "Sorry, sorry. So I'ma be taking you kids to my house now, and we'll start some training. Soon you kids'll probably be in the Academy."

"You're gonna make us soul reapers?" Takeshi had known he wouldn't have much of a choice, but he hadn't thought about Kaito or Akari.

"Well o'course. You've already got a zanpakuto, and they have some decent reiryoku. You guys need training if you're gonna be of any help. So, ready t'go?"

The answer was seemingly the only one they had. They felt that Gin was hiding something from them, but they had no better options. They left with him, having already accepted that the lives they knew were gone.

* * *

**A/N:Takeshi, Kaito, and Akari are all my OC's, and Kurosawa is my original zanpakuto. Don't worry about Takeshi's flirty nature, he will get turned down by non-OC's. I stick to my word, after all. Reviews are appreciated and encouraged, especially with advice (like if I botch some Japanese). Thanks to Warrior of the Stars for beta reading.**


	2. The End of the Beginning

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, or the characters. It would be nice if I did though.**

* * *

Rangiku was already suspicious when Gin told her he had something he needed help with, but, as the buxom woman walked into his house, she was flabbergasted, to say the least. "What the hell is wrong with you?!" The three children in the living room quickly turned their attention to the door for the second time, with curiosity instead of wariness this time. Rubbing her eyes with one hand, Rangiku paid little attention to the children. "Look, I don't know where or want to know why you got them, but you have to take them back."

"But they're _orphans_." Gin cocked his head sideways as he finished his sentence, as though he didn't understand what was wrong.

Sighing, Rangiku looked at Gin seriously, which immediately worried him internally. "Gin, that means they need to be at an orphanage. I don't even think you're really parent material, even if you wanted to officially adopt."

"That's why _you're _here, _see_? I can't be here _all_ the time to train them, so I figure you could help. " Gin's finger pointing in the air only made Rangiku look all the more baffled. "Plus I have no idea if they're weaned or not so I figured you could-"

Rangiku then smacked him, looking cross. "They're naturally big, not pregnant big you dolt. Keep trying to explain yourself."

Gin looked at her, holding his face and pretending to be hurt for a couple seconds before continuing. "Aaaanyway, I already asked Yamamoto if I could keep 'em, and he didn't seem to mind."

* * *

"Heya Head Captain!" the old man turned and looked at the young, cheery individual skeptically as he continued walking.

"What is it you want?" Gin noticed how Yamamoto didn't call him by name or title, but didn't care and continued pestering nonchalantly.

"See, I found some kids in that raid the other day and-"

"That reminds me, Lieutenant Gin Ichimaru. Tell me, why were you there, and not taking care of the paperwork you were sent?" Gin's smile faded as he realized that being called by his name didn't feel anything like he figured it would.

Rubbing his neck, Gin, in one sentence, lied and admitted, "I let Aizen handle it. He doesn't seem to mind me taking breaks every now and then. Sooo I decided to go a-strolling." Gin's typical smile, now restored, gave off its typical nonchalant and disturbing feelings that were appropriate for what he said, as picking up raiders for Aizen's experiments in the way he did would've seemed like exactly that to any witnesses. "And while I was strolling I found some kids being attacked and orphaned, and since they had spiritual pressure I was thinking I could prepare them for the Academy if I could keep 'em. So? Can I keep 'em? Preeeeeeeeeeeety please?"

The Head Captain glared, wondering why Aizen had chosen such an individual for his lieutenant. "Do as you please Lieutenant, but if there are any problems with them while they're under your care, you will be held responsible." Gin left with a smile and a chuckle, leaving Yamamoto wondering if the lieutenant heard the last part, and if the kids would be alright.

* * *

"Not to say he didn't seem grumpy, but he didn't mind." Rangiku began to question the Head Captain's sanity as Gin spoke, but realized there were more important questions.

"Wait, Gin, d'you even know how to take care of kids, let alone-"

Kaito promptly interrupted, pointing at Rangiku's chest, and said "Are those real?" Gin already knew that Kaito was prone to insults and interruptions, but even he couldn't have prepared himself for the statement, or for Rangiku to kick Kaito halfway across the room. "Ow, bitch."

"Fucking little brat!" she screamed out as Gin held her around her waist.

Gin spoke up easily, as holding Rangiku didn't take much for him. "Wooow, I'm amazed you're still conscious Kaito. Good job!" Akari and Takeshi had already ran over to him to check on him, as he got up and glared at Rangiku.

"Good job, my ass. I'll take that kick as a no, then." Kaito was then bitchslapped into the wall, breaking it.

"Ignorant little bastard!"

Gin only just then estimated how much keeping these kids would cost him, not that he looked worried. "Tut tut, should'a said it before I let her go." Takeshi and Akari hesitated to check on Kaito, worried that he might start talking again, or that Rangiku might continue. "So, Ran-Ran, I need to get to work, so can you help them with their zanjutsu? Thanks!" Gin spoke quickly, as he knew he'd need to start running.

"What?! No, I-" Gin used shunpo to get away before she could say much. She slowly turned around and looked at the children, with her eyes suddenly looking exhausted.

Kaito was the first to speak, pretending his face didn't still hurt. "Aw, _shit._"

* * *

The training and the care began and continued with relatively few incidents. Rangiku disliked Kaito, even after their initial confrontation cleared up. She made friends with Akari, feeling she needed to as the only other female around, and found Takeshi's plentiful compliments adorable. Gin creeped Akari out most of the time, but Takeshi seemingly took to everybody and Kaito found Gin's stories of brutality fascinating. Gin also found Kaito's general attitude endearing… or amusing. He changed up his adjectives fairly often. Takeshi was unable to release Kurosawa again, unable to recall it's name, leaving it as a plain, single-edged tanto. After a few days he found that he had a katana-looking zanpakuto alongside Kurosawa. Gin confirmed that it had his reiatsu, and told him that it was hardly fit to be used as a weapon, considering how his reiryoku is split between two blades, and already wasn't much to speak of. Gin decided it was best to not ask how Takeshi's father got an asauchi, or to mention how amazing it was that the boy had developed the blade so quickly. Takeshi's ego, he noticed, didn't need stroking.

* * *

"Gin!" Rangiku exclaimed, noticing the masked man on his way in the window. "Good thing you're here. I'm leaving 'cause we need more pork. Takeshi went on a bacon binge again, so we need something to eat for dinner." She pulled him back through the window as he tried to inch himself backward, and continued talking rapidly. "Akari's working on some kido and Takeshi's trying jinzen, so they might need some help, but Kaito's out back just practicing hakuda. Be back soon!"

Taking off his mask, Gin whimpered slightly. "Aw crap, I just wanted a drink. Meh, now's as good a time as any." Pouring out some tea in a pot on the counter, he questioned why she had the tea going if she was going to be leaving, and called out for the kids musically. "Hey, hey, hey, get the fuck in hereeeee!"

Takeshi got up from his stance, having not heard anything from his zanpakuto and spent all forty minutes thinking up and memorizing compliments. "Damn, he can carry a note." He picked his two blades off his lap and went to the kitchen.

Kaito had been punching a boulder, and had just finished boring a hole straight through. "If I wanted to hear shit, I'd go to the restroom." He continued griping as he walked and wiped blood off his hands.

Akari simply walked into the room, having been practicing the first hado, Sho, and noticed Gin pouring the tea. "Hey, what're you doing?! That was my tea! Rangiku wanted me to start learning how to cook!" She swiped the teapot away from him and put it back over the fire, glaring now.

Gin sipped at his tea as the boys walked in. "Huh. That would explain the flavor and temperature of it." He took another sip, contemplating why it took two months to get started on something so trivial. "Y'know, I dunno if making tea really counts as cooking."

"So, Gin, what'd you call us for?" Takeshi couldn't help fantasizing about Akari making him bacon as he spoke. His thoughts were divided between what was going on and his fantasy, something he'd always done when his imagination took over. Not that he was adept at it, as he was unaware of his drooling.

Gin put his tea down, wondering how long Rangiku would be gone, how much time he would have to explain. "Hoo, boy. This is complicated. See, kids, I'm gonna tell you a story, it's a long one, and it's about an asshat." Takeshi immediately took note of the word Gin used, deciding he would use it often. "This asshat, he's the captain of my squad, Sosuke Aizen. He's evil."

All of the kids looked at Gin with renewed interest, their eyes lighting up. Kaito was the first to speak up, mostly because he liked the thought of being evil. "So, if you're working with this guy, are you evil too?"

Gin's eyes opened up at that statement, not sure if he was offended or not by the assumption. "Huh? No, I-"

"Holy shit, I think that's the first time I've seen your eyes open!" Kaito had been waiting for this moment the whole time he'd been here.

Akari spoke up next, turning her head to the side as she thought about the implications behind what Gin was saying. "So why is he a captain if he's evil? Your eyes are pretty. Shouldn't the other captains punish him?"

Not used to compliments about his appearance, or to Akari voicing her insights to him, Gin was shocked again. "Uh, no, most of Soul Society doesn't know he's evil, so-"

"Then why don't you tell them, or get a group of other heroes and beat him up yourselves?" Takeshi liked to fantasize about being a hero, so Gin wasn't shocked, and resolved to keep talking so they couldn't interrupt more.

"Cause this is about revenge, and I'm helping him be evil so that I can gain his trust and learn his weaknesses for when I defeat him myself. Now could'ya guys let me finish telling you about how I want you guys to grow strong so you can help fight Aizen, pretty please?" The rushed nature of Gin's voice silenced Takeshi, Kaito, and Akari if their respective ambition, admiration and curiosity didn't. Gin went on to tell the kids of Tosen, of the Hogyoku, of arrancarification and hollowfication, of Las Noches, and of Aizen and his zanpakuto, all without a word from the kids, who were awestruck.

"I still dunno if there's a way past its illusions, but-" Gin stopped as he heard the door open. Turning back to the kids, he rushed out a final sentence. "Look, nobody else can know what you know, or _that_ you know. Don't speak to anybody about it but me, and each other. Got it?"

Rangiku snuck up behind Gin, yelling in his ear. "Dammit Gin! What are you doing?! You're not teaching them sexy stuff are you?! We said that'd be my thing!"

Gin jumped away quickly, cupping his ears. "Yeesh, don't worry, I know! You getta teach 'em about how to be sexy, I getta teach 'em about sex, I _know!"_

"What?!" Rangiku immediately focused on that "misunderstanding" as Gin figured she would, and immediately forgot that he had been talking to them about anything, as he hoped she would. The kids left to train together, and whisper about what Gin told them.

* * *

Three years after Gin's (grand?) reveal, they all passed the entrance exam for the Spiritual Arts Academy, with flying colors. Takeshi scored lower than Kaito and Akari, who scored into the first class. Kaito gave him hell because of it, but Takeshi had held back, not that he said so. He was worried about his dreams, in which he could hardly see or move, and always ended with a black-armored samurai cutting him down. He had fantasized about sitting in class with them in the days leading up to the exam, but found himself hardly devastated at all.

"Ready to go, brats?" Rangiku had a tinge of sadness in her eyes, looking down at the teenagers in front of her, ready to leave. She even found herself thinking about how she would miss Kaito.

Gin was eating some ramen at the table, and barely looked up from his food. "See ya!" He slurped as Rangiku eye's threatened to bore a hole in his head. Takeshi hugged his face into the woman's chest, eliciting an eye roll from Akari, and raised eyebrows from Gin and Rangiku.

Takeshi spoke as the blonde pushed him off of her. "We'll miss you guys." The three of them began walking off, with Rangiku sighing as she closed the door. Takeshi looked back when he thought he heard her crying, or maybe whining. "Alright, so what'll we do once we're there?"

Kaito scoffed at him. "I don't know what _you're_ gonna be doing, but _we're_ gonna be taking advanced classes, for people who score higher than _others._"

"Screw you! I mean, like, what do we _need_ to do? Do we head to dorms, or what?" He couldn't stand the fake disgust in the word others, even though he knew it was fake.

Akari spoke before Kaito could insult Takeshi again, ever the group's mediator. "We'll find out when we get there. Don't worry. We can probably just go with the flow when we get there." She pulled Takeshi away as Kaito became focused on making a card trick work. He often whiled away his time by practicing different tricks, talents and games, not seeming partial to any. "Hey, what happened with your exam? You already have a zanpakuto, after all. Shouldn't you have scored higher?"

"I just didn't do my best." He smiled awkwardly, held out his hands palms up, and shrugged his shoulders. "I couldn't stop thinking about you, I guess. Sitting on the beach, holding ha-" She hit him on the back of his head, and stared him down. "Geez, alright," he said, rubbing the back of his neck, "I just, held back. I didn't want to let out too much. I mean, I still don't know what happened with my zanpakuto. Gin said that the body of the guy I killed, back then, it… I'm just not sure of my power." She slapped him, and looked into his eyes, her crimson red to his ice blue. "Alright, I'll try harder, okay?"

With that, Kaito butt in, having gotten the card to mix with the deck just right, and having only heard Takeshi's last sentence. "Why bother, you suck anyways." They continued walking towards the academy, laughing and yelling all the way. Completely unaware of Aizen passing them by on his way to visit his lieutenant at his "new" house.


	3. Life's Beginning

**A/N: I figured that since our protagonists are finally getting to their physical prime (looking mid-teenage at this point) it would be good to give out some bios. Takeshi Mori: Birthdate: February 13th… (Eventual) Height: 5 ft., 10 in. /178 cm. … (Eventual) Weight: 139 lbs. /63 kg. … Eye color: Icy blue … Interest: Women and the many facets of life (including love!) … Skill: Acting and storytelling … Tastes: Likes bacon and ranch dressing above all. Doesn't understand what it is to dislike food … Passes free time by: daydreaming, flirting and thinking about philosophy. Someday, he'll get addicted to manga and video games… Description: Soft, youthful features, though not quite feminine. Thin, and not very noticeably muscular (kinda like Ichigo and Yumichika). Always seems to be leaning slightly forwards or backwards. Remarkably soft hair. Typically uses a smooth tenor voice, but yells with an aggressive bass.**

**Disclaimer: I wonder if Kubo-dono would sell me the rights to Bleach..?**

* * *

Walking into his class on the first day, Takeshi immediately "surveyed the battlefield," looking up at the students already sitting in their tiered seats, and almost immediately found his "primary objective" sitting in the third row up. He smiled, and went to sit down next to her. Barely in the seat, he began to speak to her. "Hi, I'm Takeshi, and you are?" His question was spoken smoothly, to make sure he sounded interested.

The girl turned slightly, her eyes widening because of the surprise, allowing Takeshi to take note of their violet hue, convincing him of her beauty all the more. "Huh? Oh, well, um… I'm Rukia. Nice to… meet… you." Her voice slowed down as she saw the young man in front of her start turning back to the bespectacled boy in the row behind them.

Handing him a small pouch full of a few kan and some glass shards, Takeshi spoke to the boy somewhat loudly. "Well, I guess you were right, I lost the bet. Her name's Rukia, not Angel or Beautiful. Here's the money, a thousand kan, as agreed."

Greedily taking the bag, and with light glinting off his glasses, the kid spoke quickly. "Sure, I don't know you, and we never made a bet, and her name obviously wouldn't be either of those things, but… why is there glass in here?" Takeshi completely ignored his ramblings, even with Rukia covering her mouth to try to stop laughing at them, and went on with his (physically) unrehearsed routine.

"So, I know we'll need to pay attention to the teacher, but I was hoping that when we're done listening to him make noise, you and I could go somewhere, and I'll make some more noise so that I hope will lure out that musical laugh of yours. Whaddya think?" _Naaaaiiiiiled iiiiiiit aaaaallllllll_, he thought, already fantasizing about what could happen if she says yes.

Having gotten her laughing to largely subside as he spoke, she continued giggling as she took her turn to speak. "Whoooh, that's funny." Takeshi's heart sank, though he kept up appearances. She continued speaking, bowing her head at first, then raising it with a smile. "Yes, if you wish to befriend me, I would be glad to accompany you. Where would we be going?" Takeshi's heart rose. As it did, the teacher began scolding them and the boy with glasses for making a commotion when he was trying to start class. As class went on, Takeshi found himself panicking over how Rukia had said the word "befriend."

As class ended, Takeshi was pleased to have Rukia start talking to him, especially since her question made it easy for him to put romantic pressure on Rukia. "So, where should we go? To 'make noise', you said?" She giggled as she finished her sentence.

"Our honeymoon, of course." He spoke eagerly, with a little excitement in his voice as they stood up on their way out of the classroom.

"Whaaat?!" Rukia's surprised face and over-the-top reaction (her arms immediately raised defensively, and she nearly knocked over the seat behind her) made Takeshi laugh sincerely and a tad excessively. It took him a few seconds to notice Rukia staring behind him. Just as he was tapped roughly on the shoulder.

Spinning around, he saw a tall, young man, also a student, with several other males behind him, none of whom looked particularly happy. Speaking slowly, the man's voice and bearing was intimidating as he shifted the direction of his index finger from Takeshi to Rukia. "We would like to speak to you. Without her." Takeshi merely looked at him blankly, nodded, and smiled back at Rukia before walking further up into the classroom.

"So, guys, how's it hanging?" He smiled briefly after speaking up, but couldn't avoid joining in with the others' seriousness.

The same man continued to speak, not allowing the eleven others to speak out against Takeshi. "Look, bro, we get the whole affirmative action thing, but there needs to be some order here. This class is only thirty-five percent female, and most 'manclubs'," spoken with airquotes, "have already formed, and one has already decided on who in the group is worthy of flirting with their subject girl." His wide arm gesture seemed pointless with how they were the only ones left in the class, aside from Rukia. "There's serious calculations going into this. Weren't you handed one of the notes during class?" As Takeshi slowly shook his head, the man continued. "Well, better late than never. Welcome to the club. I'm the current leader, Taka Tanaka. You seem like you've made good progress, but the group still needs to decide on flirting privileges. You are?" The group seemed to lighten up as the man put his hand out for Takeshi to shake.

Shaking his head more aggressively, he put his hands up in front of him. "Wait, wait, why can't we all hit on her? Let her choose who she likes? Healthy competition and all that? I just don't get the point of a club." The man started to speak up, but Takeshi cut him off. "Actually, I don't care, you guys waste your time, I'll be offering Rukia romantic choices." Having finished, the manclub grabbed at him as he hopped down to Rukia, waiting at the door. "Shall we be on our way? Maybe we could get something to eat in the Rukongai and dream about our wedding?"

Just as he got out the door, with Rukia's face lighting up with embarrassment, Taka pulled him back in by the shoulder. "Listen up jackass-"

Takeshi was fully prepared to listen to Taka's whining, or to stab him with the tanto in his kosode, but Kaito quickly appeared and punched the man into the others running behind him, surprising everyone but himself. He had a smile on his face, again unlike everyone in the room, aside from Akari, who was just entering herself. Cracking his knuckles, he turned to Takeshi. "So, your class is full of bitches too, huh?"

He looked at Kaito, not sure if this should be considered odd or not, and smiled. "Oh, you've already fought your whole 'advanced' class, and came here to see me? You do finish fast, don't you?"

Akari sighed, looking between the manclub and Rukia, who couldn't stop looking shocked, already guessing what was going on as she joined the two young men's banter. "No, he just took the time to intimidate a couple of our classmates as we waited for class to start. We came here because I wanted to see what kind of trouble you'd be in on our first day."

Kaito spoke up joyfully, turning his head towards the manclub, causing a couple of them to get nervous. "We knew you'd be in some trouble involving a girl. I just didn't think you'd give me such a great excuse to beat on some bitches." Kaito didn't enjoy every aspect of combat like Takeshi did, he just enjoyed toying with those weaker than him. Like the devil reveling in the misery of the damned, as Takeshi put it, and like a boss, as Kaito put it. As the manclub left, most of them doing so rather quickly, and none of them leaving out the door Kaito stood in front of, Kaito and Takeshi both called out to them. "Bitches!"

Takeshi even waved as he called out. "Have fun!" Rukia looked on as the three laughed, wondering what the hell was going on, and how Kaito could have overpowered all of them so easily if he was in the same class as her friend Renji. Kaito left without bothering to ask who Rukia was, and Akari rushed off to join Kaito after introducing herself.

"Yeeeaaaaah, those are my friends. Sorry." Takeshi stared down into Rukia's eyes, with a light smile and a soft, daydreaming look in his eyes.

Rukia had to pinch her thigh to get herself to stop staring into his eyes, something Takeshi would come to notice as his flirting branched out over the years. "I-it's fine, really. My friends were pretty rowdy too. Come on!" She grabbed him by the arm and started walking away with him. "You said we should head out to Rukongai, but do you even have any good ideas as to where to go?"

* * *

"Yo, Akari, who's next?" Kaito had just finished beating up a third-year student, and was letting his friends take his unconscious body out of the improvised fighting ring in the alley. The two of them, Akari as the manager and Kaito as the fighter, had already made a respectable profit doing fights in the Rukongai, having gone through thirteen fights in just under an hour. Kaito had come up with the idea, while both of them were capable of convincing a few dozen students to show up. They planned to use some of the money to get dinner afterwards, though it was already getting late. Kaito had yet to draw his asauchi, in spite of the kido and blades sent his way, but wasn't growing bored. Quite the opposite, in fact.

"Well, I need to check with the remaining people to see who isn't scared shitless of you. Should be able to find someone, but you might want to make this next fight look close. Maybe take a couple of deep cuts, 'fail' to block a kido." She walked away with her clipboard to talk with the remaining spectators and challengers. Kaito took the time to play a game of solitaire, though he noticed what seemed to be a disturbance in the crowd. He saw a woman, another student from the academy, pushing her way through and yelling. Akari seemed to understand what was going on just as well as he did, though she was trying harder to figure it out. "Ma'am, is there a problem?" As she spoke she realized that she didn't seem to have been here previously.

With frustration in her voice and face, the woman grabbed Akari by her uniform and yelled. "What the hell is going on here?! You brats need to be studying, focusing on your education, not beating each other senseless! I have half a mind to report all of you without offering any chances for redemption!"

Kaito spoke up, still staring down at his game of solitaire, though he kept one eye on Akari, just in case. "Hold up, who the fuck are you?" As he spoke, everyone who had started to flee the scene halted.

Pushing back Akari, she stepped towards Kaito. "I'm Kanisawa, sixth-year student, currently holding back from beating you all into the ground! Now start running and I won't get you all expelled!"

Putting down his cards and stepping forwards, Kaito spoke plainly. "Sure, I'll fight a girl. Akari! Start taking bets."

Dumbstruck, Kanisawa quickly returned to her senses and drew her sword. "Fine, you want a fight so bad, I'll give you one, but you have to end this crap when I win."

Kaito smirked, glad that this was working out so well. He'd really wanted to see how he'd stack up against the older students. "Sure. But I'm pretty sure I'm already proving to be a better student than you are."

Kanisawa charged forward with shunpo, sword raised, already annoyed. "How so?!"

"Because," he declared as he appeared behind her, moving that much faster. "The academy's commandment states," kicking her back, onto the ground with her zanpakuto flying ahead of her, "that in order to protect that which one must protect, don't be honorable, slice the enemy you must defeat from behind." He placed his foot on her back as she tried to get up, and lightly hit the back of her head.

Drawing his own zanpakuto, Kaito barely managed to block Shuhei's as he dashed down from a nearby rooftop. Even having blocked it, the force of the blow still managed to send him flying further than Kanisawa's blade had flown. The black-haired man spoke aggressively, glaring at Kaito. "Watch it." He looked back at Akari and the crowd behind her, then down to Kanisawa. Helping her up, he lightened his voice. "You alright? What's going on here?"

Looking up at Shuhei and then glaring at Kaito, Kanisawa grumbled out what she had to say. "I'm fine, I was just trying to get theses brats to stop this fighting club thing."

Keeping his eye on Kaito, Shuhei said "Aw, hell, let them have their fun. Makes for good training. Either way, he probably won't find any more fights. Not from anyone who isn't a sixth-year anyway." He began leaving, having to practically drag Kanisawa away. Turning back to Kaito, he spoke with a raised eyebrow. "I'm Shuhei Hisagi, sixth-year, you?"

Kaito scrunched his eyebrows together, slightly pissed at getting one-upped, slightly wondering how he could keep making money, and noticing the 69 on Shuhei's face without caring about it. "Kaito Hayashi, first-year, and apparently the best around."

"Good to meet you." Shuhei left using shunpo, leaving Kaito to kick the ground, disappointed that his taunting failed.

Akari came walking over to him, calm as ever. "Well, I guess we'll have to start letting the idiots fight each other if we wanna keep making money. After seeing you clash with the legendary Shuhei Hisagi, some of them actually want to study under you."

Gritting his teeth, Kaito growled. "Fuck that, tell them I'll start fighting groups. And I'll be charging three thousand kan per lesson, one lesson every Sunday." Akari could tell that Kaito would reject the proposal if she offered to start fighting. He could barely hold back when Kanisawa was getting rough with her.

"Alright everyone, fights are over for today, 'cause Kaito and I need to go get dinner. Bring three thousand kan to Kaito's place on Sundays if you want to be trained, and tomorrow after school Kaito will be fighting groups as well as individuals!" The twenty people left immediately began cheering, and Kaito took Akari by the arm as they went to find a ramen shop. Waving back at the crowd, Akari yelled out. "Good night everybody!"

* * *

**A/N: I'll do more OC bios in the next few chapters, and I'll include poetic descriptions like Kubo-dono did as the story reaches climax. I'll try to make them make sense, and I promise that I'll stop using the word 'beginning' in the title, and that the quote in the summary will show up. In the final chapter (HEH). Thanks to Warrior of the Stars for beta reading.**


	4. Awe and Shock

**A/N: Bio #2. Kaito Hayashi- Birthdate: November 24th… (Eventual) Height: 5 ft., 11 in. /180 cm. … (Eventual) Weight: 145 lbs. /66 kg. … Eye color: Forest Green … Interest: Hanging out with the people he approves of, regardless of what they're doing … Skill: F***ing with people's heads … Tastes: Likes spaghetti and mac n' cheese above all. Dislikes most vegetables … Passes free time by: Practicing performer skills, such as magic tricks, juggling, fortune-telling, etc. … Description: Defined jaw line, looks indifferent more often than not, short and scruffy hair, noticeably (though only averagely) muscular, baritone voice that only ever sounds condescending, smug, solemn, angry or happy.**

* * *

"Hey, think you could handle a hike?" Takeshi's first words to Rukia on the second day of class confused her at first, and she decided to take the question at face value. She'd already been baffled enough the previous day, between Takeshi, his friends, and the "manclub" causing chaos, though she found it somewhat enjoyable. She found Takeshi to be a more thoughtful friend than Renji, constantly aware of how awkward the situations he put her in, and she found herself hoping that he would be around more than Renji, and continue to amuse her as he did yesterday, though she couldn't help questioning his motivations. After all, he was the one who did most of the opening up, and yet he seemed so interested in spite of that. She certainly didn't open up much…

She snapped out of her thoughts as he repeated the question, her face showing her shock as she tried to push her thoughts further away so she could just enjoy the interaction. "Uh, sure, I think? What do you mean hike?"

He smirked, making her wonder how nervous she should be. "A walk up a mountain, of course! There's something up there I wanna show you, and the path's a couple of miles long. Think you can handle it?"

Rukia immediately scoffed at him, having collected herself enough to engage him in the conversation properly. "Can I handle it, please! I'm not as fragile as I look."

"You do look fragile, especially being so short." Takeshi punched the bespectacled boy in the face just as Rukia was getting ready to berate him for offending her. Turning her head back to Takeshi with another surprised look on her face, she saw his face in the moments as he was finishing the follow-through, and how happy he looked. The only thought she had about his face was _what the-_ before she was distracted again, this time by Takeshi.

"First you won't help me hit on her, now you help me look good in front of her. Make up your mind, ass." The bespectacled boy groaned as he lay in his chair on the floor, making Takeshi laugh as he turned back to Rukia. "So, after class then?"

Her eyes finally returning to their normal size, she focused her thoughts on talking again. "Huh? Oh, yes, definitely. Although, should we eat first, since it sounds like it'll take a while?"

Takeshi was about to respond, when he noticed a vaguely familiar guy coming close to them in the tier of seats. Coming up behind Rukia, he spoke in a rough voice, his height a noticeable medium to Takeshi and Rukia's. "Hello Rukia, I'm Rei, honored to be in your lovely presence," he said with a bow. Takeshi then realized how the bracelet the man wore resembled others men in the class wore, signifying he was a member of one of the manclubs. Based off of what he said and how a couple of students nearby, notably the leader of Rukia's manclub, Taka, were paying close attention to him, Takeshi guessed that his purple bracelet signified an attraction to Rukia. Rukia simply blushed and wondered if this was to be normal for her life from now on. "I was hoping you would come with me to have dinner later, so as to get to know each other more… intimately." He winked as he finished speaking, his long black hair falling around his face, and Takeshi decided he should butt in and exclude the guy before Rukia could respond.

He was beat to the punch by the bespectacled student, still unmoved on the floor a row up. "You're all idiots. She's not that cute. Hinamori-chan for life!" He threw his fist into the air as he finished speaking, seemingly unconcerned that he was on the floor.

Pointing his thumb and leaning his head in the kid's direction with his palm facing himself and his fist balled up, Takeshi looked at Rei and spoke up. "Wanna kick his ass together?" Shrugging, Rei hopped onto the desk with Takeshi, and they did exactly as they agreed to. Until Rukia yelled at them to stop, that is. Hopping back down to Rukia, they high-fived. "Fucking wannabe, throwing in honorifics just to seem in-the-know. Please, continue, Rei."

Rukia sighed, facepalmed, and spoke up. "Look, Rei, I already agreed to go with Takeshi somewhere, so you'll have to-" She broke her sentence off as Rei ran away to the rest of the manclub, where they began to talk of "dethroning" Takeshi, who couldn't help laughing, though he stated that the manclub was more decent than he had previously assumed, just as the teacher for the class walked in. As she sat there during class, Rukia began to realize that hiking up a mountain with Takeshi would leave them secluded, alone, for a good period of time. After that, she began to think about the possible horror stories that their outing could end in. Finally, she thought about whether or not the two of them would come across any rabbits.

At the end of class, they left together, with Takeshi stopping off at the dorms to pack some things for the trip. Giving Rukia some water and some fruit, he told her not to eat it, to only eat and drink what he was carrying on him, so she could preserve what she had in case they got separated. She simply laughed at him, telling him that they wouldn't be that far removed from society, not where they were going, anyway.

Most of the way up the mountain, a thousand feet up, they paused to take a break and look out over the Rukongai. "Look at them all down there, so small, although…" Takeshi trailed off, leaving Rukia wondering what sort of odd thought he was having.

"Although what?"

"They're small, but they're not quite _petite_ like you…" He spoke with a daydreamy look in his eyes again, though it quickly faded as Rukia rammed her fist into the left side of his face, nearly knocking him off the cliff. "What the hell?!"

Shaking her fist at him, Rukia screamed, "Screw you, that's what the hell! Call me petite!"

"But, you are." Blocking a couple of kicks she started throwing his way, he kept talking. "There's a difference between small and petite, y'know. Small is just small, petite is cute."

Rukia started blushing as she stopped kicking. "D-don't be stupid. That's not how it works."

"That's how I say it works." Smiling down at her, Takeshi brushed away a stray strand of Rukia's hair, causing her to grab his hand and blush more. "C'mon, we need to hurry, or we'll miss the sunset." Putting an apple in her hands, Takeshi continued walking, leaving Rukia to wonder what might be wrong with Takeshi's mind, before she decided to keep up with him.

Reaching the flat-top clearing at the top of the mountain, both Rukia and Takeshi immediately questioned what they saw. Rei, from earlier, standing at the edge of the cliff facing the horizon, with a bokuto in hand, turned to face the two of them. Looking around, Takeshi spoke up, feeling fairly certain Rei was the only one here. "Well hey there, Ro. What're you doing here?" Rukia was somewhat uncomfortable with how dark Takeshi seemed all of a sudden, and with Rei standing there, armed and quiet.

Glaring, Rei spoke loud and proud. "My name is Rei, have some respect. I was chosen as the best candidate for Rukia's lover by the manclub, and I can't let you take her from me so easily. I challenge you, Takeshi Mori, to a match!" Throwing a second bokuto on the floor towards Takeshi, who was now only twenty yards away, Rei continued talking. "I decided this would be an excellent arena for us when I heard about your plan. Fighting, with the sun setting over the horizon, fighting above the world and its plain problems, we engage in combat as an act of love, not violence. You may not understand, not being a romantic, but I shall show you the error in your ways! We shall fight for Rukia's heart, so that the victor may share the sunset with her!" Standing parallel to the cliff, with Rukia standing at the side, the two got into their stances, with Takeshi holding his bokuto with only one hand.

Smirking, and with a tear falling from his eye, Takeshi spoke confidently. "I'll fight you, Rei, as an honorable man. But I only do so because I do understand, all too well." Brushing the salty streak off his cheek, he continued. "And because I can see you act as a real man, not as a member of the club. Your bracelet's gone, do you not intend on going back?"

"Only if I win."

"Melodramatic idiots," Rukia mumbled.

Rei charged at Takeshi, muttering a kido incantation, and swung a few times, with Takeshi effortlessly deflecting each of the three. With the third, Takeshi knocked his blade upward, with Rei letting his left hand off of the blade, grabbing Takeshi's arm, and calling out "Hado number eleven, Tsuzuri Raiden!" The electrical current hitting Takeshi knocked him back, off balance. Rei brought his wooden sword back down at him, yelling as he did so. Takeshi intentionally finished falling and rolled away from Rei to get his bearings. As Rei charged again, dragging his bokuto off of the ground, Takeshi resolved to end it. He charged in, slipping under his opponent's sword and tackling him to the ground. He brought his bokuto to Rei's neck, and waited there, looking into his eyes. "Damn."

Standing up, and helping Rei do the same, Takeshi spoke solemnly. "You're good, good enough to compete with me for Rukia. But I won't lose her to you easily." Tearing up, Rei nodded as he began walking away. Rukia had been watching the whole time, her eyes always squinting in stupefied disbelief at what was happening. She sighed as she walked past Rei to the cliff, where Takeshi was already sitting, and started considering what to say about all this nonsense. Then Takeshi called out. "Rei, come watch the sunset with us!" Looking back to Takeshi, Rei saw the smile on his face, and Rukia's exhausted one. Smiling. He ran over, and Rukia sat between them. Having finally collected her thoughts as the two young men began talking, she vocalized the summary of her opinions, smiling happily as she did so.

"Idiots."

* * *

Two months into school, Kaito was disappointed to be going on a field trip, as he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep while they were gone. _At least I might have some fun with this thing._ _Need to make sure I stick with Akari, though._ As they were being handed papers he immediately looked at Akari's, and after finding his symbol to be different and someone else's to be the same as hers, he promptly took the other student's paper. "Look at that, same symbol. What're the odds." Akari laughed at him, knowing full well that he was stating the improbability, not questioning it, and that he had cheated to get that card. She didn't mind though, as once she found out about the groups she knew he would be better off having her near him to hold him back from being a little too lively. Kaito just wanted to make sure she'd be alright, not caring that she was strong enough to handle herself.

Kaito was visibly intrigued to see who was leading their group, while Akari felt a very sudden exhaustion when they saw the three. Standing next to Aoga and Kanisawa, Shuhei had spoken up, introducing himself and the two behind him. Kaito and Akari couldn't care less about Shuhei's fame, unlike the rest of the class, as they'd come across him before. Instead, they were extremely interested in the possibilities, Kaito hoping he got to kill "this smug son of a bitch" and Akari hoping she could get Shuhei in on the fight club and the tutoring. They continued thinking as they stood there amidst the clamor, the students beginning to group together, even as their remaining group member walked up to them. "Hi, I'm Aiko. You guys have flower cards too, right?" Her red and black hair was messy, and had a couple of stray tufts, with her bangs just barely covering her right eye.

Starting to walk into the opening senkaimon as he introduced himself, Kaito adjusted the asauchi on his back. "Sure, I'm Kaito, this is Akari. Try to stay with the larger group."

"Heh, don't mind him, he just doesn't open up much. He's probably going to end up wandering away from the group and fighting hollows, but you won't have to come with us if you don't want to." Taking Aiko by the hand, through the senkaimon, Akari continued talking to the girl, and they became quick friends, with Aiko learning a lot about Akari and her friends through stories. Aiko had little to say about herself, though Kaito was able to get her talking. As they went with the group, hitting pluses on their heads for konso, he berated Takeshi at every mention of him, and told jokes, many of which were incredibly offensive. But they laughed anyway.

"Wow, why do you hang out with him if he's as awful as he sounds?" Aiko had heard three anecdotes about Takeshi so far: one where he ended up dancing and poorly singing, drunk and mostly naked, on top of a counter with Rangiku; one where he nearly got the three of them enslaved to a local boy; and another in which Kaito and Takeshi had to fight seven children who wanted to collect on their debt. All three of these were tied to Takeshi's gambling, which he was normally good at. Not that Kaito had mentioned that.

Akari spoke up, as she performed konso for the second time that night. "He's not as bad as he sounds. Usually, he manages to make all the crap fun. When friends are together, we make each other happy, and Takeshi does that pretty easily with people." Looking over to Shuhei, who hadn't really acknowledged Kaito or Akari, she sighed. "He just happens to enjoy his vices a bit too much. He's nice, though, you'll like him."

"Probably because he'll be flirting with you like you've got boobs made of sugar." Kaito's comment made Akari sigh, and simply made Aiko curious. "Fucking idiot could use a good ass-kicking."

"Well, I'll just have to see for myself. From what you guys have told me, he might actually like some discipline!" Aiko's wink made Akari laugh nervously, and made Kaito want to kill himself. _He's gonna floor her if she finds him attractive. Callin' it!_ He thought. Then they heard Kanisawa's screams.

Kaito was one of the only ones to see her be skewered, having already been looking in that direction. It made him laugh. Loudly, and a tad excessively. "Hah! Bitch!" Diverging his thoughts, he drew his asauchi, grabbed Akari, and began running. "Aiko, let's go!" The girl followed, somewhat dazed in the confusion. Quickly reaching the top of a nearby building, Kaito put Akari down, with Aiko getting there a couple of seconds later. "Look." The girls did exactly that, and saw the fight with the hollow. Then they saw that there were other hollows converging on the scene.

Akari spoke calmly, though rushed. "How did we not sense them before? I can't even sense their reiatsu now. Interesting. We'll have to take care of them."

Flustered, bordering on panicky, Aiko simply yelled while holding her arms. "What do you mean?! There are way too many! Even Hisagi seems to be having trouble!"

Kaito walked to the edge of the building, his asauchi still in his hand. "Stay here, see if you can hit any with a kido. Stay right there, Aiko, and you'll be fine. Akari, don't follow me until they're gone." Jumping off, Aiko muttered to herself about the senkaimon, while Akari began a niju eisho for the hado byakurai and shakkaho. Kaito immediately found two huge hollows on a building between the one he was on and the one Shuhei and the students were on. Catching their attention, he charged, inviting both of them to slash at him. Jumping directly into the air, they slashed again, only for one to be knocked off balance by Akari's byakurai, and the other to have his claw blown apart by her shakkaho. Kaito quickly took advantage, killing the first with a quick swipe through its mask and head, then flipping over to the other and kicking its head in as it screamed. Three more came running at him, and he smiled, though his smile quickly faded as he noticed Gin's reiatsu appear, along with another.

Landing next to him, shouting "bakudo number 39, enkosen" as she did so, Akari formed the shielding kido in front of her zanpakuto and blocked two of the three hollows' claws. Kaito deflected the last of the three into the ground next to him.

"Dammit, I told you to stay put!" Spinning, the two of them ran at the hollows the other had blocked, effortlessly cutting them down with a few swipes of their sword. Aiko came down as well, having already seen Gin and his captain, Aizen, kill the hollows that hadn't been engaging Kaito. The three were the last of the class to be evacuated, with Kaito annoyed that he didn't get to prove himself more, Akari considering theories about what had just happened, and Aiko now obsessed with the two of them.

Gin held back from acknowledging the two, as they expected, though Aizen seemed to take notice. He had told them not to acknowledge their past together, and had made some excuse to Rangiku for it. "It's safer that way," he said. Kaito and Akari weren't the type to care anyway, being too self-important and understanding, respectively.

As they left, Akari nursed Shuhei's wounds, Kaito took notice of Renji, Izuru, and Momo as potential fights because of how they capably helped Shuhei, and Aiko decided that she would have to continue hanging out with Kaito and Akari. She couldn't consider anything else in her shock.

* * *

**A/N: Disclaimer: In spite of how awesome it sounds, I think that maybe owning the rights to Bleach would be a pain.**

**Thanks to Warrior of the Stars for her continued beta reading. Next up, Akari's bio, and evil manclub deeds begin.**


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